New Orleans social worker who died at 39 did not have coronavirus, test results show

[alp227]

NEW ORLEANS —

When Natasha Ott, a 39-year-old social worker originally from Claremont, died on March 20, loved ones suspected she died of COVID-19.

Ott, who lived in New Orleans, had suffered symptoms generally associated with coronavirus infection in the days before her death. Her job exposed her to strangers from disadvantaged communities in New Orleans, a city that’s become a hotspot in the outbreak.

Ott was tested for COVID-19, but died before she received the results — which came back negative.

So, did she have the virus?

Her doctor suspected the first test was a false negative, and requested a retest. There’s little public data on false-negative rates for COVID-19 tests, but research in China indicates it may be about 30%.

On March 25, five days after her death, Ott’s second round of test results came back — again negative.

Full: https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-04-01/coronavirus-louisiana-natasha-ott

[appalachiablue]

1. K/R Strange

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

2. Not necessarily strange.

Given that typically about 7500 people die every day in this country, even now most people dying are not dying from the Corona Virus. I realize that may change, but even if we get to the point where many thousands are dying every day from Corona Virus, many other thousands will still be dying from other causes.

[Maru Kitteh]

3. A 39yo female well enough to work would make her an outlier for sure though. Unexpected.

39yo women don't generally just keel over from a common cold, so it is strange.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

4. Who knows?

Maybe she really did have some underlying condition.

After all, high school students periodically drop dead while playing football because of undiagnosed heart issues. Infants have strokes. People die from all sorts of unexpected things.

[Nay]

5. Every year, a certain number of younger people keel over dead from the flu, though. And

undetected heart problems, strokes, etc.

[LisaL]

6. Did they test her for flu?

[Maru Kitteh]

7. Of course they did. They always test for influenza first.

Horses before zebras, and covid was most certainly still a zebra at the time she was tested. They still test for influenza first.